Title

Authors

Document Type

Open Access

Degree Program

Japanese

Degree Type

Master of Arts (M.A.)

Year Degree Awarded

2009

Month Degree Awarded

September

Keywords

Buddhism, Women, Sex, Impurity, Japan, Literature

Abstract

This thesis consists of research on women and Buddhism in light of a medieval Japanese Buddhist tales collection called Kankyo no Ｔomo. This collection reveals the predicament in which women in medieval Japan found themselves. As the focus of sexual desire (towards them and by them), they were also inherently polluted due to their connection with blood (kegare).